This is the link to the play: http://asbamericanlit.edublogs.org/files/2011/10/21078735-The-Crucible-Arthur-Miller-2hmdzot.pdf
this is the link to the movie: http://vimeo.com/52989403
I want you to chose the character Abigail Williams
Remember:
1. you also need to analyse, how does the character symbolize or develop the major concerns of the play
2. give powerful thoughts – go outside the box and back up your arguments with evidence from the text
3. Must be entertaining
4. Must be expository – to show
5. mention the author Arthur Miller – Arther Miller explores human personalities – this play is a close analysis of human psychology
and he used witch hunts as an example. He is promoting communism
6. make a hypothesis – about the character today and their relevance to the 21st century
the Body Paragraphs must include:
1. What is Abigail’s function in the play ? – what is her role structurally in the play?
2. Abigail’s significance to the major themes represented in the play – her significance to the plot ( do not tell the plot, we assume
the audience already knows – NO PLOT TELLING)
3. Techniques and symbols in the play to show her significance – for example, the play is placed in a Christian village with hard right
wing philosophy – rigid social restrictions – Christian community – showing a rigid society that has laws and is very violent to
offenders – no sexual attraction such as dancing, sexual expression, artistic expression vanity (thought of as the work of the devil).
OVerall its a simple puraten town
4. Lasting significance
Some themes you can explore for Abigail are: Lust , passion, sexuality , manipulating , the role of the young women etc.
OVERRALL:
1. What is the role of the Character in the play
2. How does the character tap into the themes of lust, passion, sexuality etc
3. Techniques used in the play to establish this character. For example Language techniques, dialogue, stage directions, symbols
For example, when Abigail was in the court room scene, when men talk over her.. how does this establish her character?
Or when she uses the expression "Goody" etc erc
seems as though Abigail is poorly educated and has never left the biblical community
the notion of heat is used throughout the play.. for example, the heat that burns in hell or in the first scene when John Proctor and
Abigail having an affair and i quote "sweated like a stalyen" or "i have a sense of heat" (Abigail)
Imagery – heat, cool, death
Symbols – signing depositions
Writing, signing, name, Christianity, fire, hell, coldness
The work must have the following characteristics 1. Exploration of a range of genre patterns and conventions to achieve specific
purposes – to inform 2. Discerning selection, organisation, and synthesis of relevant and substantive subject matter to support
opinions and perspectives 3. Manipulation and control of role of the speaker and relationship with audience 4. A discerning combination
of a range of grammatically accurate language structures for specific effects in a expository spoken task 5. discerning use of mode
appropriate cohesive devices to develop and emphasize ideas and connect parts of the expository speech 6. discerning use of a wide
range of apt vocabulary for specific purposes 7. discerning analysis of the ways, ideas, attitudes and values that underpin texts and
influence audiences 8. subtle and complex evaluation of perspectives and representation of concepts, identities, times and places in
text. 9. Discerning evaluation of aesthetic features and their effects in texts. It is extremely important that you follow the above
statements. Also: it is important to use examples from the text to support and illustrate the ideas. Every word must be valuable
I have already started : can you please use this part of my work and please extend from it .. Please follow the same style of formal
writing (PhD standard)
The Crucible: An Expository Panel Discussion
Intense themes and convictions are evident throughout Arthur Miller’s The Crucible, manifesting in both the setting and characters of
the play. Stemming from the deep seeded foundation of communism of the 1950’s, Miller uses the premise of the 1692 witch trials to
accentuate “the paralysis that had set in among many liberals who… were fearful… of being identified as covert Communists if they
should protest too strongly” (Miller, 1996, p. 158). Emphasis is also placed on prevalent societal themes such as: jealousy, greed,
power, deception, and mass hysteria among various characters. Nonetheless, Miller’s principal ideologies are most cunningly conveyed
through the use of the antagonistic main character, Abigail Williams.
Abigail Williams
Introduction and Function to the Plot
Abigail Williams plays not only a significant, but highly intricate role in The Crucible. The unmistakable villain of the play, Abigail
is driven solely by egocentric motives of lust, power, and revenge. As Ralph Waldo Emerson (2013) states, “Fear defeats more people
than any other one thing in the world” (p. 1). Through the use of skillful manipulation, Abigail preys upon the timidities of the
townspeople, using the community’s fears of witchcraft and devil worship to her advantage to fulfill her own selfish desires.